Chapter Text
The warehouse was supposed to be empty.
That was the first lie.
The second lie was that the mission would be easy.
The third, and perhaps most offensive, was Chuuya's claim that Dazai was capable of following instructions.
“Stop touching things.”
“I’m not touching anything.”
“You’re literally touching the thing.”
Dazai looked down at the metal device in his hands.
“…This?”
“Yes, that.”
“Oh.”
Chuuya's eyebrow twitched.
They were fifteen years old, already infamous enough within the Port Mafia to be trusted with missions that would make most adults reconsider their career choices. Tonight's assignment was simple: infiltrate the abandoned warehouse, retrieve a stolen ability-related artifact, and bring it back.
Simple.
Which meant, naturally, Dazai had immediately decided to make it difficult.
“Put it down,” Chuuya ordered.
“But it looks interesting.”
“Dazai.”
“It has buttons.”
“Dazai.”
“I wonder what this one does.”
“DON’T!”
Click.
The entire warehouse lit up.
Chuuya froze.
Dazai froze.
Somewhere behind them, an alarm began screaming.
“…You absolute idiot.”
“I was curious.”
“You're going to die.”
“Together?”
“NO.”
The device crackled.
A strange blue-white light spilled across the floor, curling around their shoes like mist.
Chuuya's expression changed.
“Dazai.”
For once, Dazai wasn't smiling.
“Yeah.”
“That isn't normal.”
“Nope.”
The light exploded outward.
Chuuya grabbed Dazai's coat on instinct.
Dazai grabbed Chuuya's wrist.
And the world disappeared.
───
Chuuya woke up first.
His head hurt.
His ears were ringing.
And something was digging into his back.
“Ugh…”
He opened one eye.
Concrete floor.
Warehouse.
Still alive.
“Dazai?”
No answer.
Chuuya pushed himself upright.
“Dazai!”
“I’m here.”
The voice came from somewhere behind him.
Chuuya turned.
Dazai was sprawled across the floor, face-down, looking deeply offended by existence.
“Get up.”
“No.”
“Get up.”
“I've decided this is my permanent residence.”
Chuuya grabbed the back of his coat and dragged him upright.
“Where are we?”
Dazai glanced around.
The warehouse looked almost identical to the one they'd been in.
Almost.
There was one problem.
The windows were different.
The equipment was different.
And the huge digital clock mounted above the loading bay displayed a date neither of them recognized.
Chuuya stared.
“…Dazai.”
“Mm?"
“What's the date?”
Dazai looked up.
His expression went blank.
Then blanker.
Then, somehow, deeply fascinated.
“Oh.”
“What?”
“We're in the future.”
Chuuya stared at him.
“…What?”
Dazai pointed.
“Look.”
Chuuya did.
The year on the display made his brain briefly stop functioning.
“No.”
“Yep.”
“No.”
“Yep.”
“That’s impossible.”
“Apparently not.”
Chuuya marched over to the clock as if glaring at it hard enough might change the numbers.
It didn't.
He slowly turned around.
“How far?”
Dazai smiled.
“Seven years.”
Silence.
Chuuya's eye twitched.
“We're fifteen.”
“Correct.”
“Which means we're—”
“Twenty-two. In this timeline, to be exact”
Another silence.
Then Chuuya kicked Dazai in the shin.
“Ow!”
“This is your fault!”
“My fault?! You were the one who yelled at me to press the button!”
“I told you NOT to press it!”
“You told me after I pressed it.”
“That does not help!”
Dazai rubbed his leg, looking pleased with himself.
“I think this is exciting.”
“I think I'm going to throw you through a wall.”
“See? Exciting.”
Before Chuuya could answer, footsteps echoed from somewhere outside the warehouse.
Both boys immediately went quiet.
The sound was getting closer.
Chuuya lowered his stance.
Dazai's expression sharpened.
Someone was coming.
The warehouse door opened.
A man stepped inside.
Black coat.
Dark hair.
Hands tucked casually into his pockets.
Chuuya narrowed his eyes.
“Enemy?”
Dazai didn't answer.
Because he was staring.
The man looked familiar.
Far too familiar.
He was taller than either of them, older, with a much more composed expression.
And then another voice came from outside.
“Dazai, if you touched anything in here, I'm leaving you behind.”
Chuuya's blood ran cold.
A second man entered.
Orange hair.
Black coat.
Hat.
Gloves.
Chuuya stared at him.
The newcomer stared back.
Then both of them looked at each other.
The younger Chuuya's mouth fell open.
The older Chuuya's face went completely blank.
“…What?”
Behind him, older Dazai slowly looked from the fifteen-year-old Chuuya to the fifteen-year-old Dazai.
His eyebrows rose.
“Oh.”
The younger Dazai smiled.
“Oh?”
Older Dazai tilted his head.
“This is unexpected.”
Older Chuuya looked like he had just been struck by lightning.
“You're…”
He pointed at his younger self.
Then at Dazai.
Then back at his younger self.
“What the hell is happening?”
Younger Chuuya immediately pointed at older Dazai.
“Who the hell are you?”
Older Dazai smiled.
“Your nightmares”
The younger Dazai blinked at Older Dazai.
“…I'm you?”
“Yes.”
He looked older Dazai up and down.
Then glanced at Chuuya.
Then back at his future self.
“…I have terrible fashion.”
Older Chuuya snorted.
Older Dazai gasped dramatically.
“How cruel.”
“You're wearing the same coat,” younger Chuuya muttered.
“Exactly. Seven years of character development, and this is what I get.”
“Shut up.”
“See? Some things never change.”
Younger Chuuya's eyes narrowed.
“Wait.”
He looked between the two adults.
Something wasn't adding up.
The way they stood.
The familiarity.
The ease.
The fact that older Chuuya had entered the room and immediately gone straight toward older Dazai without even thinking about it.
Then younger Chuuya noticed something.
Their hands.
Older Chuuya's hand was resting casually against Dazai's wrist.
Not threatening.
Not restraining him.
Just there.
Familiar.
Comfortable.
Younger Chuuya stared.
Older Chuuya noticed.
He immediately pulled his hand away.
“…Don't.”
Younger Chuuya's expression became suspicious.
“Don't what?”
“Ask.”
Dazai's younger self looked delighted.
“Oh, now I definitely want to ask.”
Older Dazai sighed.
“Chuuya.”
“No.”
“Perhaps we should explain.”
“No.”
“You're making it worse.”
“I know.”
Younger Chuuya looked between them.
“…Are you two hiding something?”
Older Dazai smiled.
Older Chuuya looked at the ceiling.
“This is a nightmare.”
The younger Dazai's grin widened.
“Wait.”
He pointed at them.
“You're dating.”
Silence.
Older Chuuya's face went bright red.
Older Dazai looked at the ceiling.
Younger Chuuya's jaw dropped.
“What?!”
“I knew it!” younger Dazai announced.
“You did NOT!”
“I absolutely did.”
“You're fifteen!”
“And apparently a genius.”
“YOU'RE AN IDIOT!”
Older Chuuya covered his face with one hand.
“I want to go back to ten minutes ago.”
Older Dazai sighed.
“Unfortunately, I think our younger selves are here to stay for a while.”
Both fifteen-year-olds looked at each other.
Then at their older selves.
Then back at each other.
Dazai smiled.
Chuuya groaned.
“This is going to be awful.”
“Definitely.”
And somewhere in the future, fate quietly sharpened its knives.
Because the worst part wasn't that fifteen-year-old Dazai and Chuuya had met their future selves.
The worst part was that neither of them had any idea just how complicated those seven years were going to be.
For several seconds, nobody spoke.
The warehouse was so quiet that the buzzing of an overhead light suddenly sounded deafening.
Then younger Chuuya pointed at older Dazai.
“You.”
Older Dazai blinked.
“Me?”
“You said you're me.”
“No, I said he's me.”
He pointed at his younger counterpart.
Younger Chuuya frowned.
“That doesn't answer my question.”
“I don't think you have a question yet.”
“I do now.”
Older Dazai smiled.
“You're going to ask if we're actually dating.”
“I already know you're dating.”
“Then why are you asking?”
“I wasn't asking!”
“You were pointing.”
“I point at people when I'm angry!”
“That's not a question.”
“Shut up!”
Older Chuuya groaned.
“Yeah. They're definitely us.”
Younger Chuuya whipped around.
“What does that mean?”
Older Chuuya stared at him for a moment.
Then sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.
“You'll understand eventually.”
“That sounds suspicious.”
“It is.”
Dazai leaned toward Chuuya.
“Do you think we're nice?”
Older Chuuya looked horrified.
“Absolutely not.”
Younger Chuuya's expression immediately brightened.
“Good.”
Older Dazai laughed.
“See? You're still you.”
“Obviously.”
Older Chuuya crossed his arms.
Then he noticed something.
The younger version of himself was staring at his coat.
More specifically, the way the black coat hung around his shoulders.
“You wear that now?”
Younger Chuuya glanced down at his own outfit.
“Yeah.”
Older Chuuya looked almost amused.
“Huh.”
“What?”
“Nothing."
“Tell me.”
“No.”
“Why?”
“Because you'll get annoying about it.”
“I am not annoying.”
Both older versions stared at him.
Younger Chuuya's face darkened.
“What?”
Older Dazai raised one hand.
“Nothing.”
“Say it."
“No.”
“Say it!”
“It's simply fascinating.”
“What is?”
“You."
“You're talking like I'm some weird animal.”
“Not an animal.”
Dazai tilted his head.
“More like a very angry puppy.”
Chuuya's face went red.
“I'm going to kill you.”
Older Chuuya snorted.
“You'll get used to that feeling."
Younger Chuuya froze.
“…What?”
Older Chuuya immediately looked away.
Dazai's smile widened.
“Oops.”
“Don't.”
“You slipped.”
“I know.”
“You're supposed to be helping me.”
“I am.”
“You're not.”
“I am emotionally supporting you.”
“You're enjoying this.”
“Also true.”
Younger Dazai watched the exchange with growing fascination.
“So we stay together.”
Older Dazai looked at him.
“Apparently.”
“For seven years?”
“Not exactly.”
Dazai's eyes narrowed.
“You mean we've known each other this whole time?”
“Yes.”
“And we haven't killed each other?”
Older Chuuya answered this one.
“Debatable.”
Dazai's eyes lit up.
“So there were attempts?”
“Multiple.”
Younger Chuuya looked offended.
“By him?”
Older Chuuya and older Dazai exchanged a glance.
“Yes.”
“No.”
They answered simultaneously.
The younger boys stared.
Older Dazai cleared his throat.
“Somewhat complicated.”
“That's one way to put it,” older Chuuya muttered.
Dazai wandered closer to his future self.
“Are you still in the Mafia?”
The question changed the atmosphere.
Older Dazai's smile became smaller.
“No.”
Younger Dazai blinked.
“You left?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Older Dazai didn't answer immediately.
His eyes drifted toward the warehouse windows.
“Things change.”
Younger Dazai studied him.
For the first time since arriving, he wasn't smiling.
“You look different.”
Older Dazai glanced back.
“How so?”
“I don't know.”
The younger Dazai frowned.
“You're still annoying.”
“Thank you.”
“But…"
He paused.
“You look less tired.”
Older Dazai went still.
Chuuya noticed.
So did older Chuuya.
Nobody made a joke.
After a moment, older Dazai smiled faintly.
“You're surprisingly observant.”
“I know.”
“Don't let it go to your head.”
“Too late.”
Older Chuuya glanced at Dazai.
There was something in his expression that younger Chuuya couldn't quite understand.
It was subtle.
Warm, almost.
The younger Chuuya immediately looked suspicious again.
“What?"
Older Chuuya raised an eyebrow.
“What?”
“Why are you looking at him like that?”
Older Chuuya froze.
Dazai's eyes flicked toward him.
Younger Chuuya pointed between them.
“That look.”
“What look?”
“That.”
“I don't know what you're talking about.”
“You absolutely do.”
Older Dazai smiled.
“He's looking at me because he likes me.”
Older Chuuya's face went red again.
“Dazai.”
“What?”
“Shut up."
“But it's true.”
“Stop saying it like that.”
“Like what?”
“Like you're proud of yourself.”
“I am.”
Younger Dazai gasped.
“You really are dating!”
“We established this!”
“No, I mean you're actually comfortable with it!”
Older Chuuya stared at him.
“…What exactly did you think dating meant?”
“I don't know.”
Dazai shrugged.
“Probably something extremely inconvenient.”
Older Chuuya stared.
Then, unexpectedly, laughed.
It wasn't loud.
It wasn't mocking.
It was just a short, genuine laugh.
Younger Chuuya stopped.
He had never heard himself laugh like that.
Not often.
Not like that.
Older Chuuya noticed his expression.
“What?”
Younger Chuuya shook his head.
“Nothing.”
But he kept staring.
Wondering.
Seven years.
Seven years could change a person.
Apparently, it could change them both.
A sudden beeping noise interrupted the moment.
Older Dazai's expression changed.
He reached into his coat and pulled out a phone.
Younger Chuuya immediately stared.
“What is that?”
“A phone.”
“I know what a phone is.”
“Do you?”
“Obviously!”
“You've been staring at it for thirty seconds.”
“Because yours looks different!”
Older Dazai looked at the screen.
Then his eyebrows drew together.
“That's not good.”
Older Chuuya immediately stepped closer.
“What?”
“We've got a problem.”
“What kind?”
Dazai turned the screen around.
A warning flashed across it.
ABILITY DISTORTION DETECTED.
Younger Chuuya frowned.
“What does that mean?”
Older Dazai looked at the two teenagers.
“It means the ability that brought you here is still active.”
“And?”
“And if we don't figure out how to reverse it…”
Older Chuuya finished the sentence.
“You might not be able to go home.”
Silence.
Younger Chuuya stared.
Dazai's expression went strangely blank.
“…What?”
Older Dazai lowered the phone.
“We need to find the original device.”
Chuuya immediately turned toward the warehouse.
“The one we touched?”
“Yes.”
“You mean it's still here?”
“Possibly.”
Younger Dazai's eyes brightened.
“So we get to go on another mission.”
“No,” said all three others.
He frowned.
“You're no fun.”
Older Chuuya grabbed the back of his coat before he could wander off.
“Stay where I can see you.”
Younger Chuuya blinked.
“Why?”
“Because you're us.”
“That makes no sense.”
“It will.”
Older Dazai looked at his younger self.
“And because if you touch another mysterious button, I'm personally throwing you out the window.”
Dazai smiled.
“You sound like Chuuya.”
Older Chuuya looked at him.
Dazai looked back.
For half a second, there was a strange silence between them.
Then older Chuuya muttered,
“Unfortunately.”
Dazai smiled.
“Fortunately.”
Younger Chuuya stared.
Younger Dazai stared.
The two teenagers slowly looked at each other
.
Then, in perfect synchronization:
“Ew.”
Older Chuuya's face turned crimson.
Older Dazai looked delighted.
“This is going to be fun.”
“No,” Chuuya said.
“Yes,” Dazai said.
“No.”
“Yes."
“You're impossible.”
“You're dating me.”
“I know.”
“You still haven't denied it.”
“I hate you.”
“No, you don't.”
Younger Chuuya groaned.
“I already hate our future.”
Older Chuuya gave him a sympathetic look.
“Yeah.”
He sighed.
“Welcome to the club.”